


Going Down

by Snoodle Whumpus (TheNerdyPixel)



Category: The Legend of Zelda & Related Fandoms
Genre: Chronic Illness, Gen, Hurt/Comfort, Kinda, Linked Universe (Legend of Zelda), Sickfic, Wind has heart problems, i don't know how to tag
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-02-06
Updated: 2020-02-06
Packaged: 2021-02-27 20:33:31
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 2,350
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/22581808
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/TheNerdyPixel/pseuds/Snoodle%20Whumpus
Summary: Wind dealt with a weak heart all his life. The other Links haven't seemed to notice the symptoms that come with it. That is, until Wind suddenly collapses while traveling.
Comments: 10
Kudos: 167





	Going Down

**Author's Note:**

> I would like to state that, although I am no doctor, I do have a heart condition which is what Wind's ailments are based on. Yay congenital heart disease! I wrote this during a particularly bad day and thought, if I am suffering, one of the boys will suffer with me. Thus, this was created (albeit rather poorly, I haven't proofread this at all and it was rather spur of the moment). Enjoy!

Wind was surprised he lasted this long without the others noticing his ailment, or at least not noticing how frequent it affected him. There were a few times where he couldn’t mask the sudden dizziness or a wince of pain, but he has been able to convince the heroes that noticed, mainly Twilight and Warriors, that he was fine. Having dealt with a weak heart all his life, he was used to the symptoms it brought. Sure, it was inconvenient and sometimes downright dangerous when his heart acted up during battle, but it was nothing Wind hasn’t experienced before. 

The day was going wonderfully in Wind’s opinion. They haven’t encountered many monsters, just a rogue chuchu here and there. Such little action was almost unheard of, as they were traversing Wild’s Hyrule. However, this view changed when Wind felt a familiar tightness in his chest. Wind opted to ignore it, as this was not new and figured it would be best to keep moving to not cause the others to worry. Besides, it should go away within a few minutes. 

It did not. If anything, as more time went by, the tighter his chest felt. His heart was beating uncomfortably fast, as if he was running from a raging lynel. Wind slowed his pace unconsciously, eyes unfocused as he focused on breathing and following the blur in front of him that made up Warriors. With his hearing becoming increasingly muffled and his vision darkening, Wind quickly realized he was fighting a losing battle. This was only confirmed when he felt hands on his shoulders, Wind didn’t even notice he had completely stopped. Wind, continuing to fight for his consciousness, felt his body slowly succumb to gravity. The feeling of the hands left, as Wind was plunged in darkness, only numbly feeling the cool ground beneath him.

…

The walk had been quiet, the Links appreciating the calmness of the day, yet still alert in case of an ambush. Not even the chattiest of the Links could resist just listening to the sounds of wildlife the fields gave. So, when the youngest started to lag behind, no one thought much of it, if they noticed at all. However, when the boy in blue broke the serenity of the field with a weak whimper, all eight heads turned to him, seeing him standing dizzily with a far off look in his eyes. Warriors was the first to react, quickly kneeling to the sailor’s eye level and putting his hands on the young hero’s shoulders. Up close, Warriors noticed how there was no color gracing his face.  
“Hey sailor, are you there?” Warriors questioned, worry overtaking his features as the other heroes gathered around the two. Warriors didn’t get a response. Instead, Wind closed his eyes and slowly collapsed. The scarf-clad hero hurriedly lay the sailor down on his side. He then took off his scarf and used it as a makeshift pillow for Wind, stroking his arm in a comforting manner. Sky knelt down next to the boy in blue and put his hand to the passed out boy’s head. 

“He doesn’t have a fever, was he wounded recently?” Sky asked the group, everyone shaking their heads. Questions were tossed around, but each one did not get the heroes closer to an answer to why their youngest member collapsed suddenly. After a minute or so, Wind’s eyes fluttered open, confused. Blinking a few times, he attempted to push himself up. Warriors’ hand did not allow him too.  
“Are you with us, hun?” Sky asked, hand brushing through the younger’s hair. Wind nodded and made another attempt to sit up. This time, Warriors simply moved his hand to Wind’s back, supporting him as he brought his knees up and rested his head between them, unable to take a deep enough breath.  
“What’s wrong?” Sky pressed on as he continued running his hand through his windswept hair.  
“My heart’s-” Before Wind could say any more, potions and the group’s last fairy were thrust into Sky’s hands. Soon, his head was gently held by Sky and he was being persuaded to drink a potion. Wind shook his head and pushed away the potion. Before the others could voice their concern, Wind continued.  
“My heart’s just beating too fast. It happens. Give me a minute.” His sentences were clipped and forced out.  
The heroes looked amongst each other, contemplating what to do as Wind went back to resting his head between his knees. 

“Can you still drink some of the potion? You don’t have to have it all, just a few sips.” Sky tried to compromise in case Wind was underplaying his ailment. Wind compiled to ease the others’ concern, as he knew the potion would do little to nothing. After a few minutes, Wind broke the silence once more as he inhaled sharply and sat rigidly upright, eyes wide. Despite having the color back in his face, Warriors placed a strong hand on his shoulder and Sky was braced to catch him if he passed out once more. Wind slowly exhaled, eyes focused on a spot of grass next to Sky. As he exhaled, he seemed to relax as his breathing went back to normal.  
“I’m good now.” Wind announced, smiling to Sky, appearing as healthy as he was earlier that day. Sky and Warriors didn’t seem too convinced, but they let him stand up with their help. 

“The nearest town is a few hours away. If we keep going, we can get there before sundown.” Wild informed the group, looking up from his Sheikah Slate.  
“I’ll carry Wind,” Twilight said as he approached the sailor, leaving no room for discussion. That did not stop Wind from trying to convince them that he could walk as he was hoisted onto the farmboy’s back.  
“Hold on, are we going to ignore that he fainted for no reason? Not to mention he said, and I quote, ‘It happens!’” an exasperated Legend exclaimed.  
“That’s why we’re going to the town and not the stable that’s closer. Towns have doctors, stables don’t.” Wild supplied. Wind’s eyes widened.  
“I don’t need to see a doctor for this again! Sometimes my heart just speeds up out of nowhere and once it calms down, I’m perfectly fine.” This was met with unconvinced looks, not that they believed that Wind was lying to them, but their nerves would be calmed once a professional told them what was happening. The rest of the trek consisted of Wild and Four attempting to lessen Wind’s increasing boredom. Wild by showing the younger pictures, and Four by reciting fairy tales and legends of his time. When the group arrived to the small town and found an inn to stay at for the night, Twilight set Wind down on a bed and waited next to Wind for Wild to arrive with a doctor in tow. Sky was also keeping Wind company, the two engaged in a game of twenty questions. 

Wild returned rather quickly, the elderly man accompanying him carrying a large, heavy looking bag. The elderly man wasted no time in setting his bulging bag down on the bedside table next to Wind and rummaging through it. Wind, curiosity peaked, leaned closer to the bag, attempting to see the doctor’s instruments. To his dismay, the doctor found what he was looking for rather quickly and snapped the bag shut once more. He couldn’t be disappointed for long, however, as the doctor had pulled out a device similar to Wild’s Sheikah Slate, only the doctor’s had a bundle of wires coming out of one side. The wires connected the device to individual flattened metal circles about an inch in size.  
“What seems to be the problem, boy? Link here said you had an issue with your heart earlier today,” the doctor questioned, aged eyes inspecting Wind’s face. Wind squirmed under his scrutinizing gaze, reluctantly telling the doctor the issue from his perspective. The doctor merely nodded.  
“Take off your tunic and lay down. You can keep the undershirt on if you wish, these little guys can be rather cold,” the doctor tapped on a metal circle for emphasis. Once Wind was situated, the doctor began placing the metal circles on his chest. Wind tensed, not knowing what was going to happen. The doctor, noticing this change, chuckled.  
“Don’t you worry none. This won’t hurt. The sensors are just going to tell me information on what’s happening with you.” Wind looked inquizically at Wild, trying to get a second opinion from someone he trusted.  
“You’ll be okay, Wind. He knows what he’s doing,” Wild said with a smile. 

Wind relaxed and the doctor, finished placing the sensors, turned his attention to the slate-like part of the device. After studying the slate for a few anxious minutes, the doctor furrowed his brow and adjusted the placement of the sensors.  
“Do you know what’s happening?” Twilight asked, head tilted. The doctor looked up from his device.  
“Well, it appears to be bradycardia, but with your description of earlier today, it could be interrupted by periods of supraventricular tachycardia. I have a few more things I need to test, but so far, nothing that can’t be managed,” the doctor supplied as he turned off the device and removed the sensors from Wind.  
“Can you say that in Hylian?” Wild said, confusion lacing the Links’ faces. The doctor blinked owlishly at the long haired Hylian, realizing his mistake a bit late.  
“Of course. The boy’s heart rate is lower than normal for someone of his athleticism, but I believe that he may have moments of supraventricular tachycardia, which would be the rapid heart beat he felt earlier. It doesn’t seem like either of these are serious, at least for now,” the doctor explained as he riffled through his bag once more and dug out a bracelet-like object with a cord. The doctor removed the cords with the sensors from the slate and plugged in the new object. The object was slipped onto Wind’s wrist and the doctor turned his attention to the slate once more.  
“Now, boy, this right here is going to inflate and squeeze your wrist. Don’t worry, this won’t hurt either, but it will be uncomfortable for a little while.” 

True to the doctor’s words, after a few taps on the slate, the bracelet slowly started to inflate, temporarily cutting off circulation to Wind’s wrist. Soon after, the bracelet released the air it held. The doctor nodded to himself.  
“Just as I suspected,” the doctor removed the bracelet from Wind’s wrist, “His blood pressure is also abnormally low, which would explain why the sudden tachycardia caused the syncopal episode earlier.” Once the doctor saw the confused faces once more he elaborated, “His low blood pressure paired with the rapid increase in heart rate caused him to faint.”  
“What can we do?” Sky asked.  
“There’s not much you can do to stop it, but there are some medications that can make it happen less frequently or help curb the intensity. Although, he is a bit young to start him on anything to lessen the intensity,” the doctor grabbed a piece of paper and a pencil from his bag, scribbled something on it, and handed the paper to Wild, “So, I would recommend starting him on this. It should lessen the frequency within a month and not cause any problems. You can pick it up from my office tomorrow if you decide to. However, once started on this, he will have to take it for life. Without the medicine, there is a chance that the tachicardia could cause a heart attack or stroke. The chance is low for now, but it is doubtful that this will get better on its own and can get worse quickly.” With that, the doctor packed up his instruments and left after being thanked profusely by Wild, Sky, and Twilight. Once he left and Wind had his tunic back on, Sky left to inform the others. 

… 

Time, Four, Hyrule, and Legend sat in their shared room, joined by Warriors, who would be rooming with the other four members of their group. The card game the band of heroes were playing halted once Sky entered the room. As Sky retold the doctor’s diagnosis, Legend put his head in his hands and groaned loudly.  
“Golden Goddesses above. And this kid said he was fine!” Legend sighed. This sentiment was shared by the gaggle of men.  
“It could be worse,” Four oh-so helpfully replied.  
“What are we going to do about the medicine?” Hyrule inquired, “Can he even get it on Outset?” At that, the heroes paused.  
“We could ask the doctor if he knows when it was first created. That could give us an idea,” Four wondered, “We can also see if Wind knows.” The incredulous looks Four received at the later statement said that the others didn’t think that would get them anywhere.  
“It’s worth a try. He did mention he saw a doctor for this before,” Time stated, his back popping into place as he stood up, “Even then, we don’t know if he’s willing to take it.”  
“He could have a heart attack! I don’t think he should get a choice!” Legend shouted, flabbergasted.  
“If he isn’t willing, he would likely stop taking it regularly. That might harm him more than if he didn’t take it in the first place.” Legend huffed at the truth in Time’s statement.  
“Then why don’t we ask him?”  
“I already did,” a new voice, recognized as Twilight, joined in the conversation, “He recognized the name of the medicine. Apparently, the doctor he saw before said he was too young for it. Granted, the last time he saw that doctor was when he was eight. He said he’s willing to try it.” The heroes let out a sigh of relief, glad that they didn’t have to deal with a stubborn Wind.  
The next day, Wild picked up Wind’s new medicine and the team was back on the road, the air filled with the ramblings of the fourteen year old hero like usual.

**Author's Note:**

> I figured the Sheikah would have more advanced ways to diagnose illnesses, so I based the doctor's tech on an EKG (loosely) and a wrist blood pressure monitor.


End file.
